Making Video Games During Wartime

A good friend of mine Insipid Ghost of Xbox Expansion Pass had a recent podcast.  During this podcast, he had a small interview with a Ukrainian Developer Antonina Melnykova from Frogwares. He asked some questions about developing video games during this time, but let her tell her story. Frogwares is currently working on a successful Kickstarter game called Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened.

Games During War

The part of the podcast I want to shine some light on is the developer interview. Insipid Ghost interviewed Atonina Melnykova from Frogwares. Frogwares is a Ukrainian developer currently working on Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened. A big thing to note is that Ukraine is currently involved in a wartime conflict with Russia. Many developers, including GSC Game World which is finishing up S.T.A.L.K.E.R 2, witnessed disruptions in this conflict. Many people are displaced from their homes, studios, and friends, and many don’t get to see their families. Different developers are voluntarily fighting in the war while attempting to work on their games because they love their country and gaming.

Fighting going on down the road from where people are working combined with rolling blackouts are some of the many challenges developers are experiencing. It’s very tragic and devastating what they have to experience during this time. Some people in the community do not care what they are experiencing and just want the games to come out ASAP. That doesn’t sit right with me at all. We need to be patient and support these developers that are going through these harsh times while working on these games. I don’t want to take too much from the interview, so I am going to let it speak for itself. Antonina Melnykova accounts for what she has and is experiencing during this time. I’ll let you hear her powerful story.

The interview begins around minute 37.